A few months ago I wrote a post about BroccoLeaf, a revitalized organic super food by Foxy Produce​. And I am so excited that I just found it in the grocery store! After purchasing it, I immediately went home to put it to the taste test. The results…

It is EXTREMELY bitter. The most bitter leafy green that I have ever tasted… but I knew that it was good for me so I proceeded to try to take away some of the bitterness.

Juicing – A great product to juice, but to hide the bitterness you will need to use a few apples to balance the bitter/sweet taste.

Chips – I made a batch of kale and broccoleaf chips in the oven. I was not able to tell the difference between the two, so that is a plus.

Sautéed – I threw together the BroccoLeaf, a little butter, salt, pepper, garlic seasoning and the result was amazing! The bitter taste disappeared and I was left with a very pleasant side dish.

Overall, I will definitely be purchasing BroccoLeaf again, but you won’t find me eating it like a salad. Even though some of the nutrients might die off from the high heat sauté cooking, the end taste was worth it. If you come over for dinner you might find this new super food on your plate!

Have you seen the new movie “Fed Up”? It spotlights America’s obsession with sugar and lack of exercise, due to the lies the government has led us to believe. The movie poster highlights the words, “Congress says Pizza is a Vegetable”. Sadly, some people believe that is true. America needs to learn that tomato paste is NOT a vegetable and French Fries do NOT count as a daily serving of fruits & veggies.

If you need motivation to start eating healthier and working out, then this movie is a good start. View the Fed Up movie trailer here: http://fedupmovie.com/#/page/home. What you are your thoughts on this movie?

What is edible, been around for centuries, and is packed full of nutrients? BroccoLeaf! The reinvented organic super food that is coming to grocery stores. We typically only eat the fruit of the broccoli plant, but Foxy Farms has discovered that the broccoli leaves are just as edible. The leaves are an excellent source of vitamin A, vitamin K, calcium, folate, and provides a 100% daily dose of vitamin C. It is sweet and crisp without the bitter taste.

BroccoLeaf can be added to…

Smoothies

Stirred in with your scrambled eggs

Tossed in a salad

Used as a wrap

Sautee it like spinach

Juice it

Add it to a stir-fry

BroccoLeaf might just be the new kale on the market. If you have broccoli growing in your backyard, give the leaves a try! For more information visit the Foxy Farms website.

I have been a meat-eater ever since I was a child, but that all changed earlier this year when I signed up for a 6 month long “professional plant-based certification cooking class”. I had no idea that it meant vegan cooking. And so my journey began! The class taught me how to prepare healthy meatless meals. I found that I didn’t really miss eating meat as long as the meal was hearty and filling.

The class also opened my eyes to the health benefits of eating a plant-based diet and how it reduced my carbon footprint. My tipping point for giving up meat is the fact that my husband and I have been struggling with unexplained infertility for the last two years. I don’t want to sit around and wait for something to change, I am stepping up to the plate and trying something new. Will it make a difference? I don’t know, but it can’t hurt either.

Benefits of being vegetarian…

Eat more Fruits and Vegetables – According to the USDA half of what you eat should be fruits and veggies. However, most Americans are eating more meat than produce. By eliminating meat, you allow more room for fruits and veggies.

Lose Weight – In an Oxford University study of approximately 38,000 Americans, researchers found that meat-eaters tended to have the highest body mass index (BMI) for their age and vegans the lowest, with vegetarians in the middle. The most likely reason is that vegetarian meals tend to be richer in antioxidants and fiber, which keeps your regular and helps to lose weight.

Live Longer – You can add approximately 13 years to your life and be healthier in your latter years if you stay on a vegetarian diet, according to Michael F. Roizen, MD, author of The RealAge Diet. ”People who consume saturated, four-legged fat have a shorter life span and more disability at the end of their lives. Animal products clog your arteries, zap your energy and slow down your immune system.”

Reduce Hormone Intake – Ranchers inject beef cows with hormones to make them grow 20% faster and dairy cows to make them produce 15% more milk. The FDA says that these hormones do not affect us, but it still concerns me that I am ingesting these unnatural hormones.

Feel Better – After 2 weeks of eating a vegetarian diet my husband told me that he felt better than he had in years. And I have to agree. I tend to have more energy and feel motivated for the day.

Save Money – Meat is expensive compared to grains and legumes.

Less likely to get Cancer – The American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) determined that there is convincing scientific evidence that red meat increased cancer risk and that processed meat, saturated/animal fat, and heavily cooked meat were also convincing of increased risk of cancer.1

Eat more Humanly – Millions of animals are subject to confinement, overcrowding, and disfigurement only to face an equally cruel demise in the slaughterhouse (which, by the way is no picnic for its human workers). In the words of Paul McCartney, “If slaughterhouses had glass walls, we’d all be vegetarian.”

Reduce my carbon footprint – According to the FAO, 18% of global emission result from livestock. Cutting out beef, pork, and poultry can cut your footprint in half! Reducing your carbon footprint will help reduce global warming and will help the environment.

I have decided to not become full fledge vegan due to the lack of certain nutrients such as calcium, iron, and vitamin B12. Also, I have found that my friends, family, and restaurants can create vegetarian meals, but vegan is beyond their comfort zone. To ensure that I receive enough protein and omega-3’s in my diet, I have decided to eat wild-caught fish. Which, I guess makes me a pescatarian!

Update as of August 2015: Since writing this post I have decided to incorporate white meat back into my diet, but only a very small portion size. Giving up such a huge food source for 6 months, was a challenge, but well worth it. I learned that I can have self-control and that meat does not have to be the staple ingredient at the dinner table.

1. World Cancer Research Fund. Food, nutrition, physical activity, and the prevention of cancer: A global perspective. American Institute of Cancer Research. Washington, DC:2007.

Incentives can be a powerful tool to achieve a desired end result. Would you eat more fruits & vegetables if you knew you would earn a prize? The government is currently funding a $31 million grant program to find out that exact question… can incentives increase the fruits and vegetables consumption of low-income consumers?

In 2012 the USDA, performed a similar study in which they allowed SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) households to receive 30 cents on every SNAP dollar spent on specific fruits and vegetables. The cost savings incentive increased consumption of these specific fruits and vegetables of about one quarter of a cup per day.

In the United Kingdom, researchers from the Universities of Edinburgh, Essex, and Bath gave elementary students a star for every time they choose a portion of fruits or vegetables at lunch time or if they brought it from home. After a student earned 4 stars they would earn a prize such as a highlighter pen. Once the incentive program was removed from the school, the majority of the children continued to eat more fruits and vegetables.

If you are struggling to eat your veggies, maybe an incentive is what you need to get motivated!

The SavingStar.com is offering a coupon for 20% off a single purchase of lettuce! The 20% offer is valid on purchases of loose, unwrapped lettuce up to $10. The coupon is valid from October 7 – 13, 2014 and must be downloaded from savingstar.com. The offer is not eligible on produce weighed and tagged using a produce scale prior to checkout.

Adults who exercise moderately should eat on average 2 cups of fruits and 3 cups of vegetables daily. 5 cups of fruits and vegetables can be overwhelming if you aren’t use to eating that much. Here are a few ways to trick yourself into eating more raw fruits and vegetables…

SLICE – Sliced fruits are visually more appealing which will make you subconsciously grab for them more!

PRE-PACKAGE – Cut up veggies and put them into individual sized baggies for a quick on the go snack. Use items that stay well in the fridge for a few days, such as carrots, celery, broccoli, oranges, grapes and pomegranate arils.

DRINK – Make a smoothie, buy a juicer to juice them, or drink V8.

SUBSTITUTION – Serve protein such as chicken or fish over veggies instead of rice or pasta. Try Cauliflower Rice!

ADD ON TOP – Add fruits to the top of cereal, oatmeal, waffles, ice cream, etc.

DIP IT – Ranch dip for veggies or carmel for fruit can be a great treat to help you eat more fruits & vegetables.

CHEESE – Add cheese to the top of any vegetable to make it a little easier to eat.

SNEAK IT IN – Shred carrots or zucchini and then add it to meatloaf, hamburgers, or meatballs. Also, puree cauliflower, squash, or bell peppers and add them to sauces, mashed potatoes, or pot pies.

MAKE IT FUN – Eating fruits and vegetables is so much easier when it is fun and exciting. Grill peaches, create veggie skewers, or make creations such as ants on a log (peanut butter stuffed celery with raisins on top).

Most fruit and vegetables that you purchase in a grocery store will come with a sticker attached to it. The sticker usually contains the brand name, origin, a PLU code, barcode, and the name of the product. Here are a few other interesting facts about those stickers…

The stickers on fruits and vegetables are called a PLU, which stands for Price Look Up. They have been in use since the 1900’s to make check-out and inventory control easier for grocery stores.

The fruit stickers are attached with FDA approved food grade glue.

All produce uses the same PLU codes. There are a total of 1421 PLU codes.

All fruit & vegetable labels come with a 4-5 digit PLU code.

Conventionally Grown Produce use a four digit number that begins with a 3 or 4. A banana for example would be #4011. You might also see these numbers with a zero in front, however zero is usually omitted. Conventionally grown produce means that the produce was sprayed with pesticides, chemical fertilizers, or weed spray.

Genetically Modified Produce use a five digit number. It is the same number as above, but the # 8 is attached to the front. A banana for example would be #84011. Genetically modified produce (GMO) means the plant or seed has been genetically manipulated or genetically engineered to make the fruit larger, prettier, juicier, or to make it grow faster. This is the worst type of produce to consume. “8 is FAKE”.

Organic Produce use a five digit number. It is the same number as the congenitally grown produce, but the # 9 is attached to the front. A banana for example would be #94011. Organic produce is the safest type of produce to consume as it was not sprayed with pesticides nor was it genetically modified. “9 is FINE”.

PLU codes are not regulated by a government agency and are therefore voluntary. However, most grocery stores require them from the farmers. This is why you see them on some, but not all produce items.

The barcode you see on the produce labels are called a DataBar, which is a smaller version of a UPC code. It is a code specific to the manufacture, and it not in most grocery store databases. That is why cashiers still type in the PLU #.

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ABOUT THE BLOG

Fruitnveggie.com is a blog all about fruits and vegetables. It in neither vegetarian nor vegan based (though many of the recipes will fit into these categories), but will appeal to anyone eating less meat and increasingly putting fruits and vegetables at the center of a meal.